Star Control II: The Ur-Quan Masters was released in 1992 by
Accolade.
It is
the second and final game in the series created by Fred Ford and Paul
Reiche III. The original version was created for PC, but later an
alternate version was released for the console 3DO, which allowed for
the inclusion of speech and a modernized intro. In a similar fashion to
Star Control, the full game is made up of two parts, one being arcade
spaceship combat called Melee. The tactical gameplay in Star Control
has been replaced by an adventure game, where the
player travels through the universe and encounters all sorts
of challenges.

Adventure game

In the adventure game, the player takes charge of a flagship
of alien
origin and sets out to free the Earth from enslavement. This is
accomplished by travelling between different solar systems and
interacting with the systems and their inhabitants.Travelling is in
itself quite challenging. Inside a solar system you can fly between
planets and scan them to see if they contain anything interesting, such
as minerals or energy readings. But to travel between systems you must
enter Hyperspace, a strange dimension where a mysterious drag slows you
down but distances are much smaller. Thankfully you have a trusty
starmap, which makes navigating this bizarre place much easier.

Picture: Navigating in
system, inside Hyperspace and using the Starmap in Hyperspace to decide
where to go.

There are several sub sections in the adventure mode. To raise
cash to
equip
your ship, you must mine a multitude of planets by sending down a
planet lander to collect minerals. This is fraught with danger, as
planets can be very inhospitable. Everything from weather and
earthquakes to extreme fire-storms and indigenous beasts are out to get
your lander. The collected minerals can be deposited at the
Starbase, where your modular flagship can be repaired and upgraded in
many ways, as well as
refuelled and stocked with more crew. At the starbase you can also
build escort ships, that can fight instead of your valuable
and irreplacable
flagship. At the beginning of the game, very few escort ship types are
available,
but as the game progresses you steadily gain more by making alliances
with other species.

Picture: Collecting
minerals is fraught with danger, but they can be used to buy ships and
equipment at the starbase.

This brings us to the other part of the adventure. The
universe you
travel
in isn't empty. There are a large number of different races inhabiting
it, each with their own agenda. Through diplomacy of many forms some of
them can be persuaded to join your cause and help you in the battle
against your enemies. This is usually accomplished either by
conversations, or item quests of some sort. While most planets only
contain minerals and sometimes indigenous life, some contain valuable
artefacts and objects that must be used to progress through the
adventure.

Picture: Conversing with
different races in the SC universe.

SuperMelee

Unlike Star Control where playing only melee was
somewhat
restricted,
Star Control II comes with all the bells and whistles you can dream of
in SuperMelee. You can build teams of up to 14 ships per side, and have
any number of doubles. You can play against the computer or a human
opponent. SuperMelee contains all the ships seen in the adventure games
and some that aren't seen. In total, there are 25 ships to choose
between, a not insignificant amount. Each ship has different its own
weapon systems and abilities, making the game quite complex.

Picture:
The Melee selection screen and the flagship combatting a Traddash. The
flagship is not playable in SuperMelee, only in the adventure game.

The free version of Star Control II is known as The Ur-Quan Masters
for copyright reasons, and is featured in our links
section. Because
the
game is open source, it can be modified by anyone. Some people already
have released mods for the Ur-Quan Masters, ranging from melee
modifications to story changes. They can be found here.